Butting In (Emma Frost)

[Snow]

She was there. At the Institute. For Mutants. Snow looked around as she walked down the path towards the main entrance, trying to observe every detail. She couldn't believe that she was actually there. She had heard of the X-Institute upon coming to America, but had never really looked into it. That is, of course, until she happened to come across an ad in a discarded newspaper.

It hadn't really interested her at first--just another passing thing--but over time it had begun to bug her that she really had no where to stay, especially now that summer was approaching and her powers were weakening. New York had a lot of homeless, but it was a harsh world, this America, even more so for a young, female Brit. Of course, she was also an alien, but that was a secret that only she knew. To anyone else, she just appeared to be a very pale, very thin, and very lost-looking sixteen-year-old. The fact that she was an alien was part of the reason she had taken so long to decide whether or not to approach the Institute.

It was supposed to be a school for mutants, but Snow didn't know if she qualified. Sure, she had powers, but did that qualify her as a mutant? On her home planet, these powers were natural; everyone had them. But here on Earth, anyone not "normal" was considered a mutant. It made her head hurt to think about it. She only hoped that the headmaster--or mistress--would be able to make sense of it all.

There was a part of Snow, a very large part actually, that worried the X-Institute would turn her away. After all, she wasn't technically a mutant, she wasn't from America (from their worst enemy really, if her studies on America's early history were correct), and she had no living relations to validate her tale. She was a stranger in a strange planet, with no where to go, no where to hide. If the X-Institute turned her out, she didn't know what she would do. She supposed that she could always try and find out more about the Brotherhood, but they seemed like the bad guys, and Snow didn't want to do horrible things, as they were said to do in the rumors.

Lost in thought, Snow didn't realize how far she walked until almost walking into the front door. Startled, she took a step back. It was even bigger close up. She looked around, but saw no one. Perhaps they all were in classes? This was a school after all, and it was in the middle of the day. Snow paused before walking inside. Did she really want to do this? She took a deep breath. Yes, yes she did.

With that, she pushed her way inside the building, calling out a soft, "Hello?" as she did so.

[Emma Frost]

Preparing for a new day. The staff was on a meeting, they were evaluating some students and discussing the formation of new teams, many of them were qualified to start some sessions on the danger room. The option for joining in battle was given, and nobody was forcing to take part on battles, but they at least needed to train for battle as means of self defense and using their abilities to save lives.

Suddenly, Emma caught some thoughts near the school. Seemed that a girl was nearing the school, intent on talking with someone inside the school. After all, whenever people started nearing the school grounds at a certain distance, sensors would alert them and she'll scan their intentions.

"Hmm. Looks like someone wants in to some interview. A possible applicant"

Eyes were instantly set on her. It had been sometime since they had recruits, so any addition was welcome into the school. Since all the activities were given to each person already, and she had to pass by the hallway already, she would talk with the applicant.

So they went their own way. She opened the door, went down the hallway to some huge wooden double doors, and was in the lobby. There, she heard a faint voice. She appeared atop the stairs, and looked down. It was a young girl, or at least the appearance of one, withe delicate features, and pale. It was quite different on the looks department to some of the other students.

"Hello. I'm Emma Frost, Co-Headmistress of The Xavier Institute. So, do you want to come here? We can talk in my office"

[Snow]

Snow paused, scared to walk any further into the building. The giant welcoming room was enough, she thought, for one visit. Besides, she wasn't all that good at keeping oriented, so she would most likely end up lost somewhere, and then have to explain to someone why she was there in the first place. Now she was starting to regret her decision to come without an invitation, or at least having already made an appointment. What if she appeared rude? Snow was so busy worrying over this new thought that she failed to hear another approaching from above.

"Hello. I'm Emma Frost, Co-Headmistress of The Xavier Institute. So, do you want to come here? We can talk in my office" Snow jumped, higher and faster than most humans would, and glanced up. Her heart trying to calm down from the scare, Snow looked at the woman. The woman, Emma Frost, looked, well, regal. Snow was intimidated by the woman, suddenly feeling very young. She gaped at her for a moment, trying to recall what the woman had said. Malmer! Snow thought in her mind, trying to remember. It was a word used by Ariantan a lot; Snow had assumed it had come from Eorith, and had naturally began using it herself. From what Ariantan had taught Snow about the Elemental's language, 'malmer' meant 'metals', which was a fitting curse word for a Gold Elemental. Snow supposed that she, herself being an Ice/Water Elemental, should probably use a more fitting term, but it suited her likings. Snow's thoughts turned back to the matter at hand.

"Uh, um, hello. I-I'm not really sure...." Snow said in her quiet voice, cursing herself for her shyness. "I just, um, came by to see, uh, to see if there were any spots open even, because I just moved to America and I saw a thing in the newspaper about this place and so..." Snow let her voice trail off, knowing she was rambling and figuring she should shut up. Snow didn't sweat--at least, not like normal humans, because of her average body temperature, but if she could have, she probably would have been drenched in sweat by then. It was then that Snow remembered that she had not given her own name yet, though the Co-Headmistress had. "I'm Eir-Snow," she corrected. Even after over a year of calling herself Snow, she still had trouble at first introductions. Fifteen years worth of habit of introducing herself as 'Eira Vaughn' would be hard to break. "Snow," she repeated again.

[Emma Frost]

The girl looked frail, and stammered often. Emma was, as always, stashing information on impressions about people she met. They had canceled the newspapers add, as it was risky to let that information lay around too easily. Now, the method was trough referrals. Given that, it was old information, but still, a new prospect was always welcome, mutants should stick together, a surrounded mutant was an stronger mutant, and it means an alive mutant.

She was aware of how the girl looked at her, and her behavior. She was so accustomed at dealing with brats and disrespectful people, that she on automatic put a haughty front. Even then, she was always careful, after all, the girl could very well be putting a shy front.

"So, Snow. That was a long time ago, when we published that add. Still, you're a welcome visit. I'll have you know that this school is related with the X-men, I'm sure you have heard of their exploits.

But girl, don't stand there, please follow me to my office, I'm ready to answer all of your questions, but if you really want to apply for admittance, is a fair trade that you'll answer mine. Is protocol, and is the first step on how we help our people. After all is said and done, you'll have time to think about it, but I'm sure you'll find it nice around here"

She started walking slowly, hoping the girl would get the hint and followed her, after all, it was a short way from the lobby to her office, giving time to the faculty and students to look at the new visit. She sent a mental message to people around to not stare, the meek girl could find herself uncomfortable and she was already curious about this girl, wondering which powers she would posses, and as a psychologist, to know about her mentality and her personality traits.

[Snow]

Snow could tell that as she stammered on, Emma Frost was examining her. Probably making sure that Snow wasn't a spy for someone. Hadn't she read somewhere that the X-Men's worst enemy was the Brotherhood, another group of mutants? For all the Co-Headmistress knew, Snow was an agent sent to spy on them. Of course, she wasn't sure if the truth was any better. Who wanted an alien at their school? From all that Snow had read and seen, aliens were the 'bad guys'. They were worse than mutants. She could only hope that those at the school were of a different opinion.

"So, Snow. That was a long time ago, when we published that add. Still, you're a welcome visit. I'll have you know that this school is related with the X-men, I'm sure you have heard of their exploits.

But girl, don't stand there, please follow me to my office, I'm ready to answer all of your questions, but if you really want to apply for admittance, is a fair trade that you'll answer mine. Is protocol, and is the first step on how we help our people. After all is said and done, you'll have time to think about it, but I'm sure you'll find it nice around here" Emma Frost said. Snow just nodded, not really knowing how to respond. When Emma began to walk away, Snow hurriedly followed, not wanting to be left behind.

As they began to walk towards Emma's office, Snow noticed that the few students that they passed averted their eyes. Were they always like this to new students? Because of her looks, she had become accustomed to people staring; to be ignored was...unsettling. She glanced up at the Co-Headmistress, wondering if she had passed the test. However, she had the feeling that it had not yet begun. The hardest part would be the questions. So lost in thought, Snow did not realize how short the walk was. Before she knew it, they were standing in front of the door to what Snow assumed was Emma Frost's office. Snow waited patiently for Emma to walk inside.

[Emma Frost]

As she opened the door, Emma felt that Snow was already close to her. She walked straight to sit down into her chair. She made a gesture to the girl to enter.

"Dear, please close the door and take a seat"

She already sensed the waves of feelings the girl was experimenting, this might be a really different environment than those the girl knew, but she was set on showing the good and bad sides of the life as a mutant.

She already had picked a strange vibe, like she wasn't a normal mutant, but given the track of enemies and allies she had over the years, it would take a lot to faze her.

So, she took some papers from a drawer. After the interview, if anything went according to plan, she would start to fill them, she wasn't a secretary, but she liked to keep a close eye into anything pertaining applications, they had come a long way to be too careful now. She locked her blue eyes on watching the girl's movements...

[Snow]

Snow waited while Emma unlocked her office, went inside, and sat down at her desk. Snow hovered at the door, suddenly unsure about going inside. However, when Emma beckoned for her to come inside, Snow had no choice but to do just that. Again, Snow hovered awkwardly in the office, not sure whether to stay standing or to sit down. And again, Emma solved the problem for her. Snow did as she was asked, and after shutting the door, took a seat directly across from the desk.

Snow watched as Emma took some papers out of a drawer and set them on the desktop. Again, Snow felt Emma's eyes on her, and felt as they took her in. Snow's nervousness, combined with her shyness, activated her powers. Unknowingly, Snow began to freeze the glass of water on Emma's desk. Before long, the once-cool ice water had turned into a frozen-solid cup of ice. If Snow continued to exert her power, the glass would soon shatter. When Snow realized what she was doing, she wanted to slap her forehead.

"I'm really sorry," Snow said to Emma, "and I can fix it." With that Snow began to unfreeze the glass of water. Unfreezing things took more time than freezing items, so it would be a few minutes before the water was back to its original state. Snow only hoped that the Headmistress didn't hate her for that little problem.

[Emma Frost]

Emma raised an eyebrow and took notice of the phenomenon taking place in front of her. It seemed that the girl's powers had to do with temperature, which seemed to go the cold route, though maybe the heat could be involved too. So far Snow looked really frail physically, but she had enough experience to never judge a book by the cover and forming an opinion after all the pieces were together.

"It's alright, darling. It at least paves the way for some questions. Relax, nobody is going to hurt you, be at ease, and tell me more about those powers of yours"

She sent a calming psi wave to the girl's position, hoping it calmed her enough to finish her task without making it worse. So far it seemed that no further intervention was needed, but she was alert, a quick mental shout to Storm and her diamond form would be ready if anything bad happened.

[Snow]

Snow saw Emma raise her eyebrows when she noticed the ice water turning to ice, but Emma didn't say anything until Snow muttered her apology.

"It's alright, darling. It at least paves the way for some questions. Relax, nobody is going to hurt you, be at ease, and tell me more about those powers of yours"

Snow suddenly felt calm, which she thought was odd, seeing as she really had nothing to be calm about. However, she just couldn't seem to get worked up. Having never been in contact with telepaths before, she had no idea what Emma Frost was doing. So, she decided to just answer the question.

"Well, um, my powers deal with wintry things. Like you saw, I can freeze anything that has liquid in or on it, and I can unfreeze things too." By this time, the water had completed melted back to what it had been before Snow's powers acted up. Now she decided to demonstrate her next power, as it was easier to explain that way. Concentrating on the water in the glass, she moved her hand upwards. The water in the glass followed suit, moving in any direction that Snow moved her hand. Snow lowered her hand, and the water splashed back into the cup.

"I can bend water, I guess you could say. But...that's not all," she said. She didn't really know how to explain this power. It was her strongest, but also her most dangerous, especially indoors. "I can create blizzards," she said, thinking that putting it simply would be the best. If Emma wanted a demonstration, Snow would give her one, but not until Emma gave the 'A-Okay'.

Now that Emma knew her powers, Snow thought that it would become easier. However, something else still bothered Snow. Emma still didn't know that Snow was an alien. Snow knew it would be discovered sometime, but she didn't know how to come out and say it. She had never told anyone before, never even given the slightest hint at what she was. Now she had to tell a complete stranger. It scared her. So, she decided to think it instead. Maybe if she formed the sentence in her head, it would be easier to say out loud. I'm not from this planet, she thought, I'm from Eorith, a planet far away from here.

[Emma Frost]

Clearly Snow's powers were tightly bonded with her emotions. It seemed like the psi wave worked, as Snow looked calmer now.

As she was explaining the nature of her powers, and making a small demonstration, Emma watched carefully every movement the girl did, reading into her body language too and getting a vibe of something else that Snow would say.

"Blizzards and water bending? interesting set you have here. Tell me, can you construct anything with the ice, or just freeze the moisture on the environment?

As you surely are aware, your powers rely heavily on your state of mind. That blizzard of you, it seems that paperwork might wait, I want to see it, can you do it? let's go to the garden, and don't worry, we have the right people to deal with it if something goes awry.

Dear, I want you to feel at easy here. Anything else you want to tell me, we can discuss it outside. You know I'm a telepath, but I'm not reading your mind, if anything is hard to tell for you, but want me to know, you can show me, just signal to your forehead and I'll go inside. On my road to this position, I've been in contact with many things that a normal person would be crazy by now, so don't be afraid to let me know"

Wit this, Emma stood up again, leaving the papers on the desk, while she walked and opened the door. She made a motion to Snow to follow her.

"Snow. A fitting name... or I guess, a nickname."

[Snow]

As Snow completed the demonstration of her powers, she could feel Emma Frost inspecting her. Something about the way that Emma was looking at her though, made Snow feel as though Emma was seeing more than just the outside. Snow felt uncomfortable, but also curious as to what the Co-Headmistress's power was. Having never associated much with others, Snow had no idea about any other powers people might have, save those that Ari had told her about Elementals. She had never met another mutant, or anyone with powers for that matter.

Snow glanced up at Emma as she started talking, and hesitated answering when Emma asked a question. For one thing, she wasn't completely sure what Emma was asking. Snow could move water, and snow, but was that was Emma was asking?

"Um, I can bend snow, too, but I really just freeze things to make ice. I can strengthen or weaken the ice to make barriers and such, but I'd have to unfreeze it to move it again," Snow said. Snow listened as Emma explained what Snow already knew about her powers. It was something that Ari had explained to her; all Elemental powers were closely connected to emotions. It was just the make-up of the brain. However, Snow almost stopped dead when Emma said that she wanted a demonstration of Snow's powers. Snow looked around uneasily. In there? Emma seemed to read her mind, because she followed up by saying that they should go to the garden, and that Snow shouldn't worry, for there were people to help clean up afterwards.

Telepath? Read minds? Was that Emma's power? She could read minds? Snow stared at the Co-Headmistress in shock. She had never heard of a telepath before, had never considered the possibility that there were people who could do that. It blew her mind. Snow realized that Emma could already know everything...but then realized that Emma had said that she hadn't been reading her mind. Then, though, Emma said that she would go into Snow's mind if she would rather show than say. Emma then reassured her that nothing would surprise or bother her. It comforted Snow to some degree, but still she wondered if the same would be true when Emma found out she was an alien.

Emma stood up, walked over to the door, opened it, and then gestured for Snow to follow her. Snow got up and walked over to the door, but paused when Emma started talking about her name. What Emma said next made Snow freeze.

"I thought you said that you weren't reading my mind," Snow whispered. How else could Emma know that the name 'Snow' wasn't her real name? Snow took a deep breath; it was time to come clean...about everything.